Single compartment selective vending machine



Nov. 9, 1937. A. w. VANDERPUT 2,098,697

SINGLE COMPARTMENT SELECTIVE VENDING MACHINE Filed April 27, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENT OR.

Mfg/@ L Nov. 9, 1937. A. W. VANDERPUT Filed April 27, 1936 SINGLE COMPARTMENT SELECTIVE VENDING MACHIN 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Nov. 9, 1937 TENT OFFICE SINGLE COMPARTMENT SELECTIVE VENDING MACHINE Anthony W. Vanderput, VLos Angeles, Calif.

Application April 27,

1 Claim.

' As the title of this invention indicates, the present invention relates to vending machines, particular reference being made to that type of manually operated machine which is adapted to vend packaged goods, such as cigarettes, chewing gum, candy, etc., and for the purpose of illustration the drawings show simulated packages of cigarettes.

.It is recognized that various and sundry machines are now on the market to vend merchandise of the type herein mentioned, but insofar as has knowledge, none of the present machines operate on the basis of a single compartment and having means to select given merchandise from a stack or pile of a plural number of different brands or types of merchandise, but on the contrary are made up of a numberrof different compartments, each of which is provided with its own separate and complete operating mechanism, thus resulting in duplication of facilities, with concurrently increased expense, and the allotment of greater space to the location of the machine.

It is therefore a prime object of the present invention torprovide in a vending machine, unitary means to select a given type of merchandise from a plural number of different types of merchandise, placed in groups, one above the other or grouped side by side.

Further objects of the invention are to construct a machine that is simple to operate, cheap to construct, reliable in operation and of minimum transverse section thereby occupying a very limited oor or counter space. v

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention may appear from the accompanying drawings, the specification and the claims.

In reference to the drawings of which there are two sheets:

Figure l is a front elevation of the cabinet designed to house the device of this invention.

Figure 2 is a plan View, although partially in section, showing one of the selectors of this in.- vention, taken on line 2 2, Fig. 3.

Figure 3 is a sectional View of the same, taken on line 3-3, Fig. 2.

Figure a is a View showing one form of coincontrolled selector arm throw means.

Figure 5 is a plan View in section taken on line 5-5, Fig. '7.

Figure 6 is a View showing the rack with its concentric teeth Yand its pinionV gear' which is adapted to'liftthe'selector'arm operating shaft.

Figure 7 is a sectional elevation showing the r1936, Serial No. 76,564

(Cl. S12-65) relative position of the several operating elements in the device of this invention.

Figure 8 is a view partially in section taken on line 8--8, Fig. 7.

Figure 9 is a section taken on line 9 9, Fig. 7, showing the tabs or lips upon which the merchandise normally rests.

In the drawings the reference character I5 indicates a housing which is divided by partitions El and i 8 into compartments i9 and 20, within which packages 22 may be placed.

Package groups A-B-C and DA rest upon lips 2d which may be struck from the side walls of the compartments I9 vand 2li, or which may be otherwise secured thereto. AV vertical compartment 3i! placed equi-distant from the transverse center line E-F, and located between compartments lil and 20 is adapted to receive and support selector arm units 28. The units 28 are shown in Figs. 2 and 3 as being square in transverse section to prevent rotation within compartment 39, and rest upon tabs 32 which may be punched from the side walls of compartment 30, or they may be otherwise secured to the' inner faces of the compartment.

Each unit 28 comprises an upper block 34 which is integrally connected with a lower block 36 as by a web 38. A disc 39 is littedv between the spaced blocks 34 and 35, and is adapted to receive the selector shaft d2 within a centrally positioned Vopening 43, and which extends vertically through compartment 30. A slot 44 extends laterally frorn the openings 43 and is cut vertically through the depth of the discs 39, and areadapted to receive a pin or stud 46 from the plural number of studs 46 which are ailixed tol shaft 42.V

The arm 26 is secured to the disc 39 by any convenient, practical'or serviceable method, as by welding, and is provided with a cam 48, while a spring 59, Aone end of which is adapted to engage arm 25 while its opposite end is fulcrumed to compartment 39, is adapted to return the arm to normal position following each operation, as willV be hereinafter described. I

As shown in Fig. 7 there are a plural number of selector units 26, the number of which depends entirely upon the number of different brands or types of merchandise to be vended. "Each of the above mentioned selector discs are provided with one of the studs 46 in companionship therewith, and in` spaced relation thereto, and which is adapted to engage and t within slot 44 when the shaft 42 is moved' upwardly or tdownwardly in response to rotation of pinion gear 52 and rack 54.

wardly or downwardly to engage their respective slots 44 'to effect union therewith to operate arm A sleeve 58, tted over the lower end'of shaft 42 is held in position about the shaft 42 by means of a collar 62 and a setscrew 64, and rotates with the shaft through its permissible degree of rotation. e

The 'collar 62 rests upon a transverse structural member 56, which supports the weight of the" sleeve and its associated elements;

As shown in Figs. 4 and 6 the sleeve 58 is provided with an elongated slot 68 within which a stud 16, secured to shaft 42 is adapted to move. A rock-arm 12 formed integrally with sleeve 58 provides means to translate the reciprocating motion of the coin-slide 56 into shaft rotational motion,Y foras shown in Fig. 4 Vthe arm 'l2 is providedwith `a slot 14 Ywithin which a pin 16, Ysecured to coin-slide plate 18 is adapted to move in response to motion of the plate '18.

A gear 52 is rotated by a crank 85 and a shaft V83 Whichis suitably journalled, as in bearings 84,

thus enabling the operator of they machine to raise shaft 42 to the correct point at which a stud 46 will enter a slot 44 in a selected unit 28 whereby .Y the same may be actuated to deliver merchandise.

"as indicated by full lines nFig. 5.V Y

Reference to Fig. l will show that a dial 81 is placed immediately above crank 85, and that it is divided, in this particular illustration, intoyfour segments 88-89-96 and 9|, and that an indicator 92 is secured to the crank, thus enabling an operator to turn the crank 85 and Vindicator 92 to the selected segment 88-89-90 Vor 9| which indicates the brand of merchandise desired by the operator. Such movement of the crank 85 raises or lowers shaft 42 and causes aV selected stud, such as stud 46 to engage slot 44 in selector 28', after which it is only necessary to place a coin in coin-placement aperture 94 of coin-slide v56 and to then force plate 18 inwardly to obtain the accessible throughopening 99 in the cabinetV I5.

It is to be noted that it is the vertical face 48a `of cam which ejects the merchandise, and that after such operation, due to theurge of spring 50, cam facer48b slides under the remaining articles in thestackand returns to normal position Rotation of shaft 42 is counter clock-wise to eject VVmerchandise from either of the groups A--B-Cor D. Arms.26,.also rotate counterclock-wise to eject merchandise from groups A and B, Vwhile theirmovement isV clock-Wise to eject merchandise from groupsC and D, due to fact that springV 50 in compartments C and D is secured tothe arm 26 and compartment 30 in a manner that is just the reverse of the mode'ofV attachment of the spring in compartmentsA and B.

In the instance of compartments A andB, the

which is in the rear of the packages in compartments A and B, while in compartments C and D the spring 50 returns (during ejection) the arm to normal position which is in front of the mer-,I

chandise in compartments C and D.

After ejection of merchandise from groups Av or B, spring 50 returns the arm 26 to normal position, as indicated by full lines in Fig. 5; this ac-` forces arm 26 to return to normal position, thereb ejecting one of the packages C or D.

The foregoing cycle of operation is typical of one machine operation. To repeat the selection of the same type of merchandise, it is only necessary to again operate the coinchute56,'how:

ever ii a different brand of merchandise is de- Ysired it is only necessary to move the dial indicator 92 to the segment,Y which is indicative of the desired brand of merchandise, and tothen operate the coin-slide in the manner previously described, whereupon the merchandise sought will be delivered to the opening 99 in the cabinet I5.

It is to be noted that each of the studs 46 is predeterminedly positioned on shaft 42 so as to selectively engage one of the discs 39.Y Provision has been made by virtue of the vertically cut slots 44, to permit the stud next to the discV to pass through the slot 44, if the shaft has been raised or lowered suiiiciently .to bring a second stud into alignment with a selected disc 38and arm 26. Y

It will be found that this construction is very simple, yet it permits great; flexibility inoperation of the machine, for anyone of the arms may or 'may not be used, as the'operatorY desires.

Having thus described the preferred form' of my invention, I wishit known that I do not limit Y Uponreaching this po- 'Y .sition the coin-slide 56 is released and spring 56 myself to the specic form of construction herein shown, but claim as a part of this invention, al1 such colora-ble variation and modification of construction as clearly fall VWithin the spirit of this invention. A Y

I claim: Y Y Y A vending machine comprising a cabinet, a pair of adjacent upright merchandise vcompartments in said cabinet, each divided into a plurality ofmagazines, a compartment positioned centrally oi said merchandisecompartments, a plurality of Vselector arm Vunits xed within said centralpoinpartment, one for each of s'aidmagazines, a shaft iny saidcentral compartment j and extending through and rotatable within said selector units,

a rack on saidshaft and having annular teeth formed concentrically thereon, a manually operable gear in constant mesh with said rack, whereby said shaft may be raised or lowered, a plurality of pins positioned in dilerent spaced relation than said selector arm units on said shaft, one for each selector arm unit, means in said yselector arm units to receive said pins whereby one of said pins may be engaged with one of said selector vunits when said shaft is raised or lowered a predetermined distance and Vvmeans to rotate said shaft and an arm in temporarily'keyed relation to said shaft, whereby anarticlemay be ejected from a preselected magazine. Y Y

ANTHONY W. 'VANDERPUT 

